No Arabic abstract
The magnetized Iron CALorimeter detector (ICAL) which is proposed to be built in the India-based Neutrino Observatory (INO) laboratory, aims to study atmospheric neutrino oscillations primarily through charged current interactions of muon neutrinos and anti-neutrinos with the detector. The response of muons and charge identification efficiency, angle and energy resolution as a function of muon momentum and direction are studied from GEANT4-based simulations in the peripheral regions of the detector. This completes the characterisation of ICAL with respect to muons over the entire detector and has implications for the sensitivity of ICAL to the oscillation parameters and mass hierarchy compared to the studies where only the resolutions and efficiencies of the central region of ICAL were assumed for the entire detector. Selection criteria for track reconstruction in the peripheral region of the detector were determined from the detector response. On applying these, for the 1--20 GeV energy region of interest for mass hierarchy studies, an average angle-dependent momentum resolution of 15--24%, reconstruction efficiency of about 60--70% and a correct charge identification of about 97% of the reconstructed muons were obtained. In addition, muon response at higher energies upto 50 GeV was studied as relevant for understanding the response to so-called rock muons and cosmic ray muons. An angular resolution of better than a degree for muon energies greater than 4 GeV was obtained in the peripheral regions, which is the same as that in the central region.
The magnetised Iron CALorimeter detector (ICAL), proposed to be built at the India-based Neutrino Observatory (INO), is designed to study atmospheric neutrino oscillations. The ICAL detector is optimized to measure the muon momentum, its direction and charge. A GEANT4-based package has been developed by the INO collaboration to simulate the ICAL geometry and propagation of particles through the detector. The simulated muon tracks are reconstructed using the Kalman Filter algorithm. Here we present the first study of the response of the ICAL detector to muons using this simulations package to determine the muon momentum and direction resolutions as well as their reconstruction and charge identification efficiencies. For 1-20 GeV/c muons in the central region of the detector, we obtain an average angle-dependent momentum resolution of 9-14%, an angular resolution of about a degree, reconstruction efficiency of about 80% and a correct charge identification of about 98%.
A Kalman filter package has been developed for reconstructing muon ($mu^pm$) tracks (coming from the neutrino interactions) in ICAL detector. Here, we describe the algorithm of muon track fitting, with emphasis on the error propagation of the elements of Kalman state vector along the muon trajectory through dense materials and inhomogeneous magnetic field. The higher order correction terms are included for reconstructing muon tracks at large zenith angle $theta$ (measured from the perpendicular to the detector planes). The performances of this algorithm and its limitations are discussed.
The upcoming 50 kt magnetized iron calorimeter (ICAL) detector at the India-based Neutrino Observatory (INO) is designed to study the atmospheric neutrinos and antineutrinos separately over a wide range of energies and path lengths. The primary focus of this experiment is to explore the Earth matter effects by observing the energy and zenith angle dependence of the atmospheric neutrinos in the multi-GeV range. This study will be crucial to address some of the outstanding issues in neutrino oscillation physics, including the fundamental issue of neutrino mass hierarchy. In this document, we present the physics potential of the detector as obtained from realistic detector simulations. We describe the simulation framework, the neutrino interactions in the detector, and the expected response of the detector to particles traversing it. The ICAL detector can determine the energy and direction of the muons to a high precision, and in addition, its sensitivity to multi-GeV hadrons increases its physics reach substantially. Its charge identification capability, and hence its ability to distinguish neutrinos from antineutrinos, makes it an efficient detector for determining the neutrino mass hierarchy. In this report, we outline the analyses carried out for the determination of neutrino mass hierarchy and precision measurements of atmospheric neutrino mixing parameters at ICAL, and give the expected physics reach of the detector with 10 years of runtime. We also explore the potential of ICAL for probing new physics scenarios like CPT violation and the presence of magnetic monopoles.
The motivation for a cosmic muon veto (CMV) detector is to explore the possibility of locating the proposed large Iron Calorimeter (ICAL) detector at the India based Neutrino Observatory (INO) at a shallow depth. An initial effort in that direction, through the assembly and testing of a $sim$ 1 m $times$ 1 m $times$ 0.3 m plastic scintillator based detector, is described. The plan for making a CMV detector for a smaller prototype mini-ICAL is also outlined.
The large next generation liquid-scintillator detector LENA (Low Energy Neutrino Astronomy) offers an excellent opportunity for neutrino oscillometry. The characteristic spatial pattern of very low monoenergetic neutrino disappearance from artificial radioactive sources can be detected within the long length of detector. Sufficiently strong sources of more than 1 MCi activity can be produced at nuclear reactors. Oscillometry will provide a unique tool for precise determination of the mixing parameters for both active and sterile neutrinos within the broad mass region 0.01 - 2 (eV)^2. LENA can be considered as a versatile tool for a careful investigation of neutrino oscillations.